“You bet.” I winked at her.
Zara waited until Caitlyn had disappeared into the house. “You’re late.”
I slipped off the too-tight bracelet and dropped it into my pocket. I planted my feet on the bottom step of her porch and looked her in the eye. “I know, but we were at the Exploratorium, and Caitlyn wanted to do the fog bridge a second time.”
She frowned. “Just because Caitlyn wants to do something doesn’t mean you should do it.You’rethe adult.”
I straightened my shoulders. “I am an adult. And I can decide to let my daughter spend extra time to learn something, especially when she’s not getting it at school.”
She rolled her eyes. “We’ve been through this over and over. Her school is perfectly fine. She’s got friends there, good kids.”
“But what’s the acceptance rate at Ivy League schools?”
“Who the hell cares? She’seight.”
“Ifucking care. It’s never too early to think about her future. If she lived with me, she could go to St. Marcellin Academy.”
“Not this again. Cole, shedoesn’tlive with you. She lives with Eli and me, and she’s perfectly happy here and at the neighborhood school.”
“Happy doesn’t get you into the Ivies or Stanford, and it certainly doesn’t get you to the executive suite. Mason’s kids are learning algebra and cello. They’re going to space camp. They play lacrosse. I got my first job through a guy I played squash with.”
“Remember, you agreed to our custody arrangement. That means I raise her as I see fit.”
I leaned forward. “What if I want to change it?”
“Cole.” She breathed in sharply through her nose, then let it out. “You wouldn’t know the first thing about taking care of Caitlyn on a daily basis. Two weekends a month where you rush from museum to park to restaurant is nothing like the daily grind of school and after-school activities and homework.”
“I did it for four years when we were together.” I’d picked Caitlyn up from daycare a few times when Zara was sick, and my daughter’s smile when she’d seen me was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
She barked out a bitter laugh. “You didnothingwhen we were together. Nothing but work, that is.”
“Nothing?” Heat prickled up my neck. “I was providing for you both.”
“Who’s going to take care of her while you’re working? You’ve never been a nine-to-five guy.”
“I’ll hire a nanny. Mason has an au pair who’s teaching the kids German.”
“She doesn’t need a nanny! She needs a parent.”
“I had a nanny.”
Her lips twisted. “And look how well you turned out.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I knew exactly what it meant.
She closed her eyes as she did the breathing exercise. “I don’t want to argue. I’ll see you in two weeks.”
“About that. I’ll need Caitlyn’s passport when you drop her off.”
She blinked her eyes wide. “You…what?”
“I’m going to Costa Rica for a work thing, and I’m taking her. We’ll leave Wednesday the 18th and come back the following Wednesday. She’ll be back by Thanksgiving. While we’re gone, you guys can have some couple time.”Win-win.
“The hell you are. She has school.”
I snorted. “Like they’re going to do anything of value the week of a holiday.”
“It doesn’t fucking matter, does it?” Her brown eyes were no longer soft like Caitlyn’s. Now they glittered hard like gems. “That’s my court-designated week. Besides, Caitlyn doesn’t have a passport. She’s never been out of the country.”
